Added some more... controversial opinions on the fic, coming from other Hetalia fans. It kinda had to be done, considering how controversial the fic itself is and how both fans and antifans tear each other down in the 'net.

Also, LOL at a certian troper. Having strong dissenting opinions and not being shy about them =/= automatically being a troll. Specially in regards to authors who have acted wanky in an already polemic fandom.

Er, just curious, but why doesn't the main page have an Edit button? Is it just me and my account? Plus, shouldn't this article be listed under All He Ever Wanted instead?

On a sidenote, I'm of two minds about the fanfic itself. On one hand, the writing is really good and accomplishes its goal of making me simultaneously horrified and fascinated with the nightmarish Alternate Universe the authors have conjured up. On the other hand, I can't shake off the feeling that these characters the authors are writing about are not the same APH characters I know and love. It's probably just my personal preferences speaking, as I don't go for angsty APH fics in general and believe that APH characterization > real-life history, but I can't help but think that this fic is just an exceptionally polished and well-written member of the "go ahead and warp the characters beyond recognition and even make them into Complete Monsters if history COMPELS it, because True Art Is Angsty and real-life history COMPLETELY defines characterization" category of APH fics.

(I know, I know, one pretty much has to give the characters depth to some extent in serious fic, but when I find myself going, "Okay, these are just different Anthropomorphic Personifications of nations that someone other than Himaruya thought up", that's when I stop reading.)

I hate it when people call characterization in this story "historical" because it's NOT. It's just the authors arbitrarily assigning personalities to the characters. Maybe they're based on the authors' ideas of history and historical events but that can never be regarded as any kind of historical Word of God. It's utterly subjective and open to biases, in some cases it's very much flawed (see the edit on Prussia, but there are other examples), and knowing the authors' opinions on certain issues some of them have very disturbing implications.

This is not an APH fic. It's a well-written (from a technical standpoint) piece of original fiction inspired by APH. It has an original plot and characterization that probably appeals to those who like this very Darker and Edgier sort of writing, and which others may have issues with, especially when they try to find traces of APH characters in it. But it's not an APH fic. Not because it's serious and lacks fun and giggles (there are some great serious, history-inspired APH fics out there), but because it has no APH characters. AU is no excuse for this level of Out of Character and Canon Defilement.

Solandra

02:30:58 PM Aug 31st 2010

(Late reply, I know, but...) That's quite interesting to hear, 67.159.45.53. I'm not as much of a history buff as some others in this fandom, so I didn't know that some of these Alternative Character Interpretations don't even have true historical basis for it. That...just makes it even worse. :(

It really is not an APH fic. As you've said, there are serious APH fics out there where the characters are still recognizably themselves, but there's a world of difference between giving the APH characters Hidden Depths and going, "well, they're countries, so they don't have fixed personalities of their own that I need to stick to!" Not to mention that, as I pointed out on the Anti Goggles page, everyone will have their own interpretation of historical events so saying that history is the be-all, end-all of APH characterization is not the way to go.

Ahh, sorry for rambling on about this. This really wouldn't irk me so much if the prose itself wasn't so excellent, the premise itself didn't have so much potential, and I didn't have such a knee-jerk aversion to seeing one of my favorite characters (not Prussia, FYI) turned from one of the subtler APH characters that encourages Hidden Depths the most into a one-note villain. :( (And why do some people think this makes for a good England/Japan rec? I don't think the authors are deliberately discrediting the England/Japan ship here, but that pairing is a total Mind Game Ship here and Japan being a Manipulative Bastard who cares only about using England for his personal gain is not what I imagine that ship to be like in canon in any shape or form.)

193.200.150.125

05:35:17 AM Oct 5th 2010edited by 193.200.150.125

Only those would think this is a good England/Japan rec who are either really into wangst and Mind Game Ship, or hate England/Japan. (Actually, considering the authors, their attitude to fandom and their stances on various ships, I wouldn't be too surprised if they were trying to do Take Thats about certain ships.) And yeah, of course the ship wouldn't be like that in canon in any shape or form— because these characters are not England and Japan, in any shape or form. Just like all the other characters they're the authors' original characters.

Solandra

02:49:41 PM Oct 8th 2010

The Take That! must have backfired then, as I've seen this fic recced on the England/Japan LJ comm and on the Hetalia Kink Meme when someone asked for England/Japan recs. (A fic whose premise is that continuation of the Anglo-Japanese alliance would have plunged the world into utter ruin? Sounds like a GREAT endorsement of England/Japan!) Heck, I'm not even majorly into the England/Japan pairing (one look at my entries on the APH Fanfic Recs page will make it abundantly clear who I'd rather see Japan with XD), and I've still read other England/Japan fics that are much, much more IC and believable for them.

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